7 Easy Ways to Create Lasting Customer Relationships

The Problem:

As a business owner, you are constantly being bombarded with information coming from all directions. To say the least, this can be overwhelming and frankly, exhausting. But you know you need to continuously connect with people and grow your customer base because that’s how you generate more revenue.

The Solution:

Relationship Marketing.

This is very different from traditional marketing in which your entire focus is on increasing your traffic and getting leads ready for a sale.

In Relationship Marketing you must change your entire mindset. To be successful, you must focus on creating conversations that connect on an emotional level with your prospect. You have to learn how to earn your clients trust first before you begin to sell to them.

Be Vulnerable

One of the best ways to do this is by being vulnerable. Let your potential customer see your ups, downs, failures and triumphs.

In relationships, you want to learn about a person’s likes and dislikes, about the things that interest them and the issues they find important. When you put the other person first in a relationship, your connection with that person deepens. And when executed genuinely with your potential customer, your sales will naturally skyrocket.

Rule of Seven

I interviewed Rachel Miller owner of Moolah Marketing and she told me that she lives by the rule of seven in her business. She interacts with her customers seven times before she ever asks them to buy from her. In fact, she said that oftentimes, her community asks her when they can buy because they are so eager to learn more from her. Rachel is a giver and because she gives and develops a relationship with her prospects first, she has been able to generate multiple six figures in her business.

Nowadays, customers want to feel valued and they want to buy from people they know, like and trust. Great relationship marketing caters to these needs without being sly, cunning or manipulative. Genuine rapport happens naturally as you engage with your customers. And the icing on the cake is that if you value your customers and make them feel like they are being heard, they will become your biggest advocates. They will talk about your brand and word will spread about the amazing things you do and your sales will soar. This word-of-mouth marketing won’t cost you a cent because you’ve taken the time to develop a relationship with your customers.

The Opportunity:

Facebook (FB) Messenger is a great way to establish relationships with your potential customers.

Question, do you enjoy receiving messages from the people you like? Me too. That’s exactly what FB Messenger is. It sends text messages through the FB Messenger App from the brands you love and trust. And the cool thing is, you can opt out or unsubscribe anytime you want to. These messages are often called messenger bots or chatbots.

What is a Messenger Bot?

Think of it as email marketing, on steroids. Email open rates hover around 10 percent to 20 percent. FB Messenger bot open rates are currently at a staggering 80 percent to 90 percent open rate. More people open messages because they are always with their phones. That’s why relationship and conversational marketing is here to stay.

Relationship marketing focuses on putting the customer first, thinking about the long-term relationship as opposed to a one-time sale. This form of marketing can help you create the know, like and trust factor which ultimately leads to s a loyal customer base. FB Messenger and chatbots are tailor-made to help make this happen effortlessly. Here are seven ways to do just that.

1. Offer a Free Lead Magnet

The best way to forge a stronger relationship with your potential customer is to offer them some valuable, free content. This is crucial at the initial stage of your client-getting relationship. You can easily do this via your FB Messenger bot and from there, you can let the conversation flow.

An example of a lead magnet might be:

• An ebook

• A downloadable PDF

• A free video training

• An email series delivered through your bot

• A case study

• A discount coupon

Your latest podcast episode

The list is endless….

You can offer your free lead magnet through your website, social media or my favorite, a simple QR Code, that when scanned, opens up a conversation in Messenger. Then your bot can send the initial message with the free piece of content. Relationship marketing is all about developing an emotional connection with your customers. Chatbots or bots are the easiest way to do that.

2. Ask Strategic Questions

Once you’ve hooked your customer with your Free Lead Magnet, it’s now time for your bot to ask a few strategic questions so you can continue to get to know your customer. These questions will of course vary depending on the industry you’re in. I read a book once that says that whoever asks the questions, wins. When you are in the position to ask questions, you get to learn more about your prospect and you are in a position to win their business.

Questions strengthen a relationship and you can ask as many questions as you like in FB Messenger. Once you understand your customer better, you’ll know exactly what they want and then you’ll be in a position to cater to them through your suite of products and services.

3. Thank Your Customers

The sweetest words to someone’s ears, and in this case, eyes, is their own name. A great way to deepen your relationship with your potential customer is to thank them, by using their name in a unique way with your chatbot.

You can also use your chatbot to thank your customers for making a purchase. You can also send them a discount code for making a purchase. You can send them to your latest podcast or YouTube video via Messenger. The possibilities are endless. When you say thank you, people remember and they will have a stronger affinity for you and your business.

4. Survey Says…

I don’t know about you, but I used to love Family Feud and the host would always say, “And the survey says.” But I digress…

With relationship marketing, you want a long-term customer satisfaction and your bot can definitely provide that. Most surveys are super boring. But if you send a survey through your bot, it can improve the user’s experience because it’s conversational and fun. The information you receive from surveys is marketing gold. Once you receive their feedback, you’re able to cater to their specific needs. Relationship marketing like real-life relationships are give-and-take. You must be willing to ask and listen and then implement.

5. Consistency is the new Currency

In any relationship, if you stop talking to that person for a long period of time, the relationship dies down and that strong attachment is lost. To keep the fire alive in a relationship, consistency is a must. The same is true with your customers.

FB Messenger is a great way to stay in touch with your clients. You can send them regular messages so they don’t forget about you or your brand. Sending a chatbot message at least once a week is a great way to stay top-of-mind. But unlike other social channels, be sure to send messages that are valuable and that move the relationship forward.

6. Go LIVE

In order to develop that know, like and trust factor, people must be able to see you. One of the best ways to be seen is to do a FB Live. I had the privilege of interviewing Molly Mahoney, Founder of The Prepared Performer and she recommends going live at least once per week. When people see you consistently every week, they get to know you and your relationship with them deepens. Molly made six figures from one live stream. She suggests finding a common problem that your audience has and then go live and discuss the solution with them. Genius, right? She answers their questions in real-time, she gives away prizes. It’s super fun and interactive.

By leveraging the power of relationship marketing with FB Messenger you can begin to develop that know, like and trust factor, quickly and effortlessly. When your customers trust you, they will buy from you. They will remember and recommend your brand to others.

A Modern-Day Example: A Public Speaker

Relationship Marketing w/ FB Messenger utilizing QR Code Messenger Technology

How can you leverage the power of FB Messenger if you are a public speaker like Kristin Thompson, Marshawn Evans or Bo Eason?

One common complaint from speakers is that they would love to connect with every attendee at the event, but oftentimes they are not able to do so. With the power of FB Messenger that has now changed forever.

Say you are speaking and you want to connect with everyone in the audience. One thing you could do is to give them a free gift, such as a copy of your slides or a free lead magnet while you are still on stage.

Simply add a QR Code to your slides and then ask everyone in the audience to scan it. Once they scan it, they will be added to your FB Messenger list. You can now begin to develop a relationship with them and go through the six things we discussed earlier.

After you leave the stage and proceed to your booth, you can easily put a QR Code on the following things so that when the person scans it, they are immediately opted into your Messenger list.

Put a QR Code on the following things:

• Business Cards

• Books

• Flyers

• Posters

• Brochures

• Table Tents

• Invoices

• Calendars

• Product Packaging

• T-shirts, hats, etc.

PRE-PANDEMIC: YOUR BOOTH

A great way to get people to come to your booth is to incentivize them with a free giveaway. You can have a large poster of your giveaway and printed on it can be your QR Code. When a visitor scans the code, they can be immediately opted in to win a free prize or gift from you.

NFC CARDS

Another really cool way is the use of NFC (Near-Field Communication) Cards. This type of communication allows two electronic devices to communicate with each other. The one I recommend is A1 Cards. You can instantly transfer your contact information to your customer’s phone with just one simple tap.

I interviewed my friend and Founder of A1 Club, Rupert Samuel and he said that marketers are flipping out over what they can do with these cards and how they can be easily integrated with FB Messenger to keep the conversation going long after an event is over.

This is an awesome way for speakers to connect with their audience with just a tap of a card. These can be ordered online and given away as business cards to your audience and when they tap on the card, they can immediately be imported into your Messenger list, CRM, Landing Page, Forms, etc. The possibilities are truly endless with this tech.

If you’re still not convinced, check out these stats:

Why use FB Messenger w/ QR Codes:

• 1.3 Billion people use Facebook Messenger every single day

• Open rate for Messages are 80 to 90 percent

• You can drive consumer behavior by sending them snippets inside Messenger about your latest: video, podcast, awards, news, etc

• You can send them free gifts directly in Messenger to keep you top-of-mind

• With email, people always use fake accounts, thereby missing your marketing message, but with FB Messenger you know exactly who they are

• If a customer has a question about a product or service, they can get instant customer service support. We all know that in business, whoever answers first, gets the sale.

• 83 percent of college students use Instant Messaging, such as FB Messenger. So if that is your demographic, you need to be where they are.

This is by far the fastest and easiest way to get someone onto your messenger list or email list.

Why not give it a try today?